Ricoh Company, Ltd.

Masatoshi Sakakitani

Yasuhiro Kawashima

Tetsu Morino

Koji Watanabe

Mamoru Yorimoto

Manabu Nonaka

Noboru Sawayama

Yasunobu Youda

Tetsuro Hirota

Shinichiro Naruse

Hajime Nishida

Kenichi Kawabata

Taku Kudoh

Akihiro Fujita

Eiki Yoshimizu

Shoji Asanuma

Takumi Hagiwara

Kazumasa Ishikawa

Yohzoh Dohki

Hideki Sueoka

Shigeyuki Ito

An image recording apparatus includes an idle ejection receiving part for receiving idle-ejected waste liquid from a liquid jet head and a waste liquid tank provided below the idle ejection receiving part for collecting the waste liquid dropping from the idle ejection receiving part. The image recording apparatus further includes a rotating member having a peripheral surface for rotating and receiving the waste liquid, and a wiping member that contacts or faces the peripheral surface for wiping the waste liquid on the peripheral surface of the rotating member. The wiping member is configured to move in a peripheral direction of the rotating member.

Image recording apparatus

A disclosed liquid-jet device includes a liquid-jet head configured to jet liquid droplets; a pattern formation control unit configured to control the liquid-jet head and thereby to form a test pattern composed of separate liquid droplets on a water-repellent part; a detecting unit including a light-emitting element configured to illuminate the test pattern on the water-repellent part and a light-receiving element configured to receive specularly reflected light from the illuminated test pattern and to output a detection signal proportional to the received specularly reflected light; and a landing position adjusting unit configured to adjust landing positions of the liquid droplets based on the detection signal from the light-receiving element.

Liquid-jet device, image forming apparatus, and method for adjusting landing positions of liquid droplets

An image forming apparatus including a head part with an ejection port configured to eject ink, a discarded-ink tank configured to collect ejected or absorbed ink in order to restore a function of the ejection port, and a sensing device configured to sense the discarded ink collected in the discarded-ink tank, the sensing device including an absorber configured to absorb the ink and an optical sensor configured to sense the light received from the absorber is disclosed, wherein the apparatus uses ink having a characteristic such that the discarded ink is accumulated in a mountain-like shape in the discarded-ink tank, and the absorber is arranged at the location, at which discarded ink can be absorbed when a mountain top of the discarded ink accumulated in a mountain-like shape reaches a predetermined height so that the discarded ink flows along a slope of the discarded ink accumulated in a mountain-like shape to the absorber.

Image forming apparatus

An image forming apparatus includes at least one liquid discharging head and a pressure release member. The at least one liquid discharging head is configured to discharge a liquid to form an image. The pressure release member is configured to adjust an inner air pressure in the at least one liquid discharging head to be continuously equivalent to an outer air pressure.

Image forming apparatus and image forming method

An inkjet recording apparatus provides an improved printing speed and improved convenience of use. A recording head discharges droplets of a recording liquid onto a paper so as to form an image on the paper. A belt conveyance mechanism has a belt onto which the paper is electrostatically attached. The paper attached onto the belt is conveyed in a direction perpendicular to a carding direction of the paper.

An ink jet recording apparatus includes a recording head, a maintenance recovery unit for maintaining and recovering a state of the recording head, a waste liquid tank removably loaded to the maintenance recovery unit to store a waste liquid from the maintenance recovery unit, a shutter mechanism arranged between the maintenance recovery unit and the waste liquid tank and including a shutter member which moves between a closed position at which the maintenance recovery unit is isolated from the waste liquid tank and an open position at which the maintenance recovery unit is linked to the waste liquid tank and a close mechanism which causes the shutter member to stay at the closed position, and a holding member removably inserted to the ink jet recording apparatus in a first direction and causes the shutter member to move to the open position in a second direction opposite to the first direction.

Ink jet recording apparatus with higher flexibility in layout of components

An image forming apparatus is disclosed that includes a maintenance recovery mechanism for maintaining and restoring a condition of a recording head. An opening larger than an outline of a frame of the maintenance recovery mechanism is formed in a side plate to which an end of a guide rod is attached. The frame of the maintenance recovery mechanism is secured and held at the upper side of the opening. The maintenance recovery mechanism can be removed in a scanning main direction through the opening of the side plate.

Growing community of inventors

Kanagawa, Japan

Masatoshi Sakakitani